Forgive and Forget
by soraxtsuna123
Summary: After Ponyboy gets hit by Darry at the beginning of the book, Soda chases after him. One-Shot. Request by Fanfics10.


**Request by Fanfics10**

**Summary: **_**After Ponyboy gets hit by Darry at the beginning of the book, Soda chases after him.**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own **_**The Outsiders**_**.**

**o-o-o**

He hit him! He hit him! He hit him!

Never in a billion years would Ponyboy would have ever expected that his eldest brother, Darry, would actually lay a hand on him. Their family had always been against it. So, for Darry to betray his trust like that hurt him even more than just a regular slap on the face. Physically, he was fine. Ponyboy could take a hit. He was just hurt emotionally. Sure, maybe running out like that was probably overreacting, but there were just too many thoughts going through his head. He felt like he was being attacked inside and out. But one thought was louder than the others: he had to get out.

So that was what he was currently doing—running away. Not permanently, of course. Temporarily. Just long enough for him to cool down and filter through thoughts. Running helped with that, but he also wanted to talk to somebody. And Johnny was the best person to talk to. Soda was an ideal person to talk to as well—they told each other everything—but he probably stayed behind with Darry.

"Pony, stop running!" the familiar voice of Soda shrieked when he was halfway to the lot. He skidded to a stop in his tracks, almost stumbling forward from the momentum. Soda caught up to him, panting hard. His hands were planted on his knees, sweat layering his movie star face. "You can really run, can't you? I kept calling out for you to stop but you didn't."

"What do you want, Soda?" Ponyboy asked, just wanting to run away again, but also thankful that he was there.

Soda quickly composed himself, swallowing his spit to soothe his dry throat. He grabbed onto both of Ponyboy's shoulder and stared worriedly at him. "Are you okay?"

Ponyboy scoffed, rolling his eyes. "What do you think? Darry hit me."

"Oh, Pony, you know he didn't mean it. It was an accident."

"I don't know about that." Ponyboy crossed his arms across his chest, wanting to cradle his cheek which he was sure was redder than a tomato at this point. He could feel his eyes sting with incoming tears, but he didn't want to seem that fragile, so he held it in the best he could.

"What do you mean? Why do you think that he wanted to hit you?"

"He doesn't like me, Soda."

Soda tilted his head to the side, not quite getting what his younger brother was talking about. "What? What are you talking about? Of course, he likes you! You're his brother!"

How could Soda not notice? The unfair treatment was as clear as day. Maybe being the favorite of the two of them made him oblivious to the fact. "Being brothers doesn't necessarily mean that we get along with each other. He hates me. Darry's always hollering at me and nothing I do is ever good enough for him. He's always ridiculing me about every little thing that I do. He always gets mad at me for the littlest thing and blames me for everything, even if I didn't do it." Ponyboy swallowed as Soda listened intensely to him. "And although I have good grades, they aren't good enough for him. When I'm studying, I should be playing with everyone, and when I'm not, I should be studying. He's pulling me in all directions, and I don't know _what he wants_. He's driving me insane and he's making me feel worthless! I can't even go out with friends without him screaming his head off at me afterward. And you? You get none of that. It's just me who deals with this. With how much he's always screaming at me, it makes me wonder if he wants me to get taken away by the state."

Soda fell silent upon hearing it. It was a lot to take in. "He doesn't want you to get taken away!"

"Yeah, right. He sure does a great job not seeming like he does." His words were seething with sarcasm.

"He doesn't want to, I promise you. He doesn't want to lose anyone else."

"Then why does he act that way? Why does he always holler at me?"

"He's frustrated with you, that's why."

Pony rolled his eyes, huffing. "Gee, thanks for the pick-me-up."

His older brother shook his head and quickly explained his statement. "_But_ that's only because of how much he cares about you. He wants you to succeed and be able to have that opportunity to do so."

"Then he could have approached it differently instead of hitting me and screaming at me."

Soda nodded. "He should have, I agree. He is too harsh on you, but this is all new to him too. He's _learning,_ Pony. Give him some credit. He was given too much and he's juggling too."

"But he hit—"

"He hit you, I know. It was wrong of him."

"How could I trust him again? What if he hits me again? What then?"

"He's not going to lay a hand on you again. It was an accident. He didn't mean it. Truly. Everything was getting out of control and he panicked."

"Panicked? That's how he responds to being _panicked_?"

"He wanted everything to stop. He didn't think before he acted. It was all impulse, but haven't you done things impulsively that you regretted right after?"

Pony faltered. Has he ever? Every day he has a moment like that, maybe even multiple times. He could feel his anger deflate a bit, but, a part of him didn't want to let everything go. But a look in Soda's eyes told him that he had to just let go for the sake of all of them and their family. Ponyboy took long, deep breaths. Soda squeezed his shoulders again reassuringly before letting him go. "I have," Pony breathed out. He had to remember that everything wasn't just about him. Darry was dealing with a lot too. But even though he knew this, it hardly diminished his sense of betrayal. "But it still hurts."

"I know, baby, I know," Soda soothed. "You just gotta forgive him though."

He shook his head. "_Forgive him_? How could I forgive him?"

"Because that's what family does. They forgive each other for their mistakes." It was hard to, and he guessed that Soda knew that he was reluctant to forgive and forget because he said, "Please, Pony. He's probably beating himself because of what he did. Let him at least talk and apologize."

"But—"

"If you don't trust him, then trust me. I swear to you that he didn't mean it and I promise that he won't lay another hand on you."

The two brothers stared into each other's eyes for many long moments. None of them blinked or looked away. Finally, Ponyboy stepped backward, nodding his head. Soda beamed at him.

"You good now?" he asked.

"Yeah, I guess I'm good," Ponyboy replied. Soda wrapped his arm around Pony's shoulder, bringing him close.

"Ready to talk to him?"

Ponyboy took a deep breath. "Ready as I'll ever be."

Don't get him wrong, he didn't forgive Darry. He probably wouldn't for a while. But he knew that forgiveness took time, and, one day, this memory would be forgotten. Only then would he be able to forgive and forget. But, for now, he had to take one step at a time—starting with talking.

**o-o-o**

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